More light. When the power goes out, we look for candles and flashlights. When the sun sets, we turn on house lights. When we get in a car at night, we turn on headlights. When we find ourselves in darkness, the answer is always to find a source of light. If the power goes out, I will have no light until I light a candle. I can complain about the power being out. I can point out to others that the power is out. I can talk about how dark it is. I can point out all the flaws in the power company, but until I find light, I am still in darkness.
There is a lot of darkness in our world. Political turmoil is dark. Sickness is dark. Wars are dark. False teachers are dark. Anger is dark. Depression is dark. Lies are dark. Poverty is dark. Fear is dark. Earthquakes and despair are dark. Destruction and loss are dark. Accusations are dark. Darkness is all around us.
Light is the answer to darkness. My focus on the darkness will only create and reinforce the darkness. I must find light and turn the light on. I must apply the light in order to eliminate darkness.
“When Jesus spoke again to the people, he said, “I am the light of the world. Whoever follows me will never walk in darkness, but will have the light of life.” ” (John 8:12, NIV84) Life comes from the light. Death comes from the darkness. Light and darkness are always in conflict but light wins. ” In him was life, and that life was the light of men. The light shines in the darkness, but the darkness has not understood it. ” (John 1:3–5, NIV84)
When I see darkness trying to increase, it is then that I must focus on the light. I must get more light in me if I am to share light. I must become a light bearer to dispel the darkness. If I grow in the light, I will dispel darkness. I do not need to focus on the darkness to emanate light. I need to plug into the power source and let light flow.
There are some Christians who feel their ministry is to focus on the darkness. They are compelled to point out the flaws and the darkness in others. They are deceived. When they focus on the darkness, their light dims and they too grow dark. Jesus said, “Your eye is the lamp of your body. When your eyes are good, your whole body also is full of light. But when they are bad, your body also is full of darkness. See to it, then, that the light within you is not darkness. Therefore, if your whole body is full of light, and no part of it dark, it will be completely lighted, as when the light of a lamp shines on you.” ” (Luke 11:34–36, NIV84) What our eyes focus on becomes the source of the light of our lives. When these “heresy hunters” focus on other Christians in judgment and condemnation that they grow dark. They have lost focus on the light source and light cannot flow through them.
No one is called to judge another believer. No one is called to the ministry of judgment and condemnation. We are not to point out the flaws in another. We are to focus on light and on carrying more light.
I have watched a demonic move in the churches and the Christians in my area. Out of a false sense of superiority, some “Christians” become focused on the darkness. They are compelled to point out to others the darkness in people’s lives. They want grace for themselves but refuse to share grace with others. Their focus on the darkness becomes their ministry and their calling. They are in deep error. Because they focus on darkness, they create division. They promote fear in the church and allow spirits of condemnation to enter. They create competition because now they are right and others are wrong.
I have watched successful Christians fall prey to focusing on darkness. I have watched their lives succumb to darkness. And soon, they become tools of the enemy.
Dear Christian, if what you are saying is not motivated by love for the person you are speaking about… Don’t say it. If what you are sharing promotes fear and judgment, don’t say it. Heed the warning of John – “Whoever loves his brother lives in the light, and there is nothing in him to make him stumble. But whoever hates his brother is in the darkness and walks around in the darkness; he does not know where he is going, because the darkness has blinded him. ” (1 John 2:10–11, NIV84)
It is time for us to bring ourselves into the light and allow the light to cleanse us. “But if we walk in the light, as he is in the light, we have fellowship with one another, and the blood of Jesus, his Son, purifies us from all sin. ” (1 John 1:7, NIV84) We then will reflect light and become an influence upon the darkness around us.
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